Adorable Penguins Are Lethal Hunters

Two scientists from the National Institute of Polar Research in Tokyo strapped video cameras and acceleromaters to the heads and backs of 14 Adélie penguins in Antarctica.

The little penguins, which can reach up to 12 pounds, race through the water and then strike at their prey, sometimes using a stealth approach.

"The movies showed that penguins moved the heads rapidly to capture krill in midwater and ﬁsh (Pagothenia borchgrevinki) underneath the sea ice. Captures were remarkably fast (two krill per second in swarms) and efﬁcient (244 krill or 33 P. borchgrevinki in 78-89 min)," the scientists write in their study published today, Jan. 21, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The footage reveals information about how penguins forage for food, which helps researchers determine the fitness of animals by learning how much energy is spent on hunting.